Improvement in sewing-machines



G. LITTLE. MODE OF OPERATING SEWING MACHINES.

No. 28,287. Patented May 15, 1860.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE LITTLE, on NEW YORK, v. v,

IMPROVEMENT m SEWING-MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 28,287, dated May 15-, 18(1).

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, GEORGE LITTL of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Mode of OperatingSewing-Machines; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and enact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming partof this specification, in which- Figures 1 and 2 are vertical sections at right angles to each other of a sewing.machine with my invention applied.

Similar letters of reference indicate correspondingparts in both figures.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invent-ion, l will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

A B O is the framing of the machine, having its stationary arm 0 hollow and furnished at the end with an air-chest, D, which may be kept supplied with compressed air through the hollow arm 0 by opening a stop-cock, g, which connects the said arm with a pipe, H, coming from a reservoir in which the air is compressed by suitable mechanical agency.

To the air-chest Dis bolted the upright air-' cylinder E, which is bored truly to receive the piston F, and which has a stuffing-box in the bottom, through which passes the upright straight needle-bar G, to whose head the piston '11 is firmly secured. -The needle-bar has the needle an attached to its lower endlike the needle-bar of other sewing-machines. The cylinder E is provided within the airchest D with two flat valve-seatsone near each eiid cach provided with an inductionport, 71, leading into the cylinder, andan eductioirport, 6, leading to the vatmosphere, each of said valve-seats being fitted with one of two slide-valves, I) b,which are connected by a rod, 0, the said valves or the rod beingfitted to suitable guides, and held up to their seats by a'spring, d, applied to their rode. Each valve is furnished with apin, f, which proj ects through its port-i far enough into the cylinder to be struck by thepiston as the latter in its reciprocating motion, produced by the admission of the air to the cylinder on its op osite sides alternately, arrives nearthe end oi or the bottomend'of the cylinder the piston may move the valvesto open the inductionport at thatjend tothe ain'ohest D and bring I v the stroke, so that in completing its stroke toward the top obtained from the reciprocating needle-bar in various ways. I have represented the shuttledriver J as connected by a rod or link, K, with one arm of a lever, L, which works on a' fixed fulcrum, h, attaching it to the framing, and

whose opposite arm contains a slot, h, in which works a pin, j, carried by an arm, M, which is rigidly-attached to the needle-bar G. By the movement of the pin j in the slot is the lever' L is caused to receive the necessary movement to operate the shuttledriver. The length of movement of the lever L is controlled by two buffers, N N, of wood, j cork, india-rubber,

leather, orother material of a moderatelyyielding character, attached to the framing .111 such positions that thelever may strike them, and the movement of the said lever being thus controlled controls the length of stroke of the piston F and the needle-bar.

l The feed mechanism represented consists of a toothedor serrated roller, 0, having a groove which receives inQit a fork at the lower end of a presserrod, P, which is fitted to slide up and down in guides Z Z, attached to the arm 0 or air-chest D, and which has a spring, m, ap- I plied to its upper side in such amanner as to keep the roller pressing on the upper surface 'of the cloth. or other materialto be sewed, and to make the said roller confine the said material to the surface of the bed Bof the machine. The saidroller is fittedto" a pivot, m, which'is composed of aspiral spring which in it's normal condition is slightly larger than the central opening'bored in the :roller to receive it, but which is sprung into the opening of the roller. The said spiral pivot has attached to it an arm,- n, which is received within a'slot in the arm M, and'which is'caused'by the ver- .tieal movement of the said arm M to receive an oscillating movement about the axis of the roller. The spiral pivot mmoves with the arm a, and in moving in onedirection the friction between the s'aidwpivot and thebore of ti'ont e. lhis mode of driving; sewing-machines by; l comgressed air-is specially adapted foriiiitnua the feed-roller tends to coilup'thfqgnier into a smaller diaittei andqsf) permits it t'qmoye. freely within the rollei without turning the latter; but in moyi ig in thel othelf't1i' rectiorl. the friction bet-ween the jflaid",piybfii il fgm bore of the feed-rlle 'jtenfis -t 0fjr 1n c mer and make it fit the teller mumh-tigtlte as to compel the roller te turn withjity ne withstanding the most eqpioiifiepplication of lubricating material'betwleeti thgejin, aiid in this w'ay the'r'oller is permitted' to 611 pver the clothe]: other material it turns-in O11e.di-.

recti0n,\but causedto hairy the'saiid m ateiiaI along the bed Bfasit tii'rns il the ether (Iii-co r;

fzwtnripg establishments where 'several me 2t:re used; in which ease the maehinee pipgi fi, ru ning the'wh-ole length of each row,

'6- machines i ua y eachbe Stopped ed by openingand closing itsstep- 'cojck; .i v 1 i: lclaim as my invention, and desire to may be arranged in-a row or rows, with one.

ggm cennectedhyaetop-Icok, g; withealunw structed,- arraiiged, and operating su'bstan- 

